Expandable stringed instrument case

Abstract

An instrument case including a bottom wall, a top wall, and a primary side wall forming a first compartment. The primary side wall has a lower wall portion joined to the bottom wall and an upper wall portion joined to the top wall. Together, the upper and bottom walls have a substantially uniform width w to establish for the first compartment a first volume for accommodating an instrument having a maximum width no greater than the uniform width w. A flexible auxiliary side wall is contractible within the primary side wall and joins the bottom wall and the top wall. The auxiliary side wall has a substantially uniform width W greater than the width w of the primary side wall and is expandable to establish a second compartment with a second volume for accommodating an instrument having a maximum width greater than the uniform width w.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]Stringed instruments of various types are widely used by both professional and amateur musicians. Typically, the instruments must be transported to a location at which a performance is to occur; On such occasions, transportation of the instruments is facilitated and instrument damage prevented by moving and storing the instruments prior to use in carrying cases generally having a configuration conforming to the particular instrument retained. Since stringed instruments are made with a variety of shapes and sizes, a properly fitted carrying case is not always available for each instrument. Consequently, a musician must either utilize ill fitted cases for some instruments or utilize expensive custom fitted cases. This problem is accentuated for many musicians who have and utilize multiple stringed instruments with various shapes.[0002]The object of this invention, therefore, is to provide a carrying case that can be safely used to store and transport s...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0003]The invention is an instrument case including a bottom wall, a top wall, and a primary side wall forming a first compartment. The primary side wall has a lower wall portion joined to the bottom wall and an upper wall portion joined to the top wall. Together, the upper and bottom walls have a substantially uniform width w to establish for the first compartment a first volume for accommodating an instrument having a maximum width no greater than the uniform width w. A flexible auxiliary side wall is contractible within the primary side wall and joins the bottom wall and the top wall. The auxiliary side wall has a substantially uniform width W greater than the width w of the primary side wall and is expandable to establish a second compartment with a second volume for accommodating an instrument having a maximum width greater than the uniform width w. Because of the two compartments, the case can compactly retain instruments of various size.

[0007]According to still another feature of the invention, end portions of the upper and lower wall portions opposite to the tapered end sections overlap the tapered end sections. The upper and lower wall sections prevent undesired contact of the zipper slide with other objects.

[0008]According to a further feature of the invention, the case has the overall shape of a stringed instrument with a narrow neck portion and a wider body portion, and further includes a cinch mechanism secured to the neck portion and operable to exert a circumferential force thereto. The cinch mechanism allows the case to compactly receive instruments with different sized necks.

[0009]According to an additional feature of the invention, the case is elongated with the body and neck portions defining opposite ends of the case, and the origin end of the zipper is located at an end of the case defined by the body portion thereby eliminating an undesirable bulky protrusion from the sides of the case.

Problems solved by technology

Since stringed instruments are made with a variety of shapes and sizes, a properly fitted carrying case is not always available for each instrument.

Consequently, a musician must either utilize ill fitted cases for some instruments or utilize expensive custom fitted cases.

This problem is accentuated for many musicians who have and utilize multiple stringed instruments with various shapes.

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